The President Muhammadu Buhar-led Federal Government may have had a rethink about its decision to have a Treasury Single Account (TSA) for all Federal Government agencies, opting to exempt 13 agencies from the initiative.
While dishing out the earlier directive, President Buhari said it would apply to “fully funded organs of government like the Ministries, Departments, Agencies and Foreign Missions, as well as the partially funded ones, like Teaching Hospitals, Medical Centres, Federal Tertiary Institutions, etc.
“Agencies like the CBN, SEC, CAC, NPA, NCC, FAAN, NCAA, NIMASA, NDIC, NSC, NNPC, FIRS, NCS, MMSD, DPR are also affected,” he had added.
But the Presidency has directed the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to exempt the following agencies from the TSA initiative: Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN), Bank of Industry (BoI), Nigeria Railway Corporation, Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria, Bank of Agriculture, Niger Delta Power Holding Company/National Integrated Power Project, National Communication Satellite Limited, Galaxy Backbone Ltd, Ajaokuta Steel Company Ltd, Urban Development Bank, Nigerian Export – Import Bank and Transcorp Hilton Hotel.
Making the directive addressed to the Director, Banking and Payments System Department of the CBN via a circular, the Accountant-General of the Federation, M.K Dikwa said the exempted agencies were “profit oriented government business entities that pay dividends to the Federal Government of Nigeria.”
The circular, with reference number FD/LP2015/C/ADC/20/1/ /DF and dated Monday, September 14, 2015 and titled: Approval to Exempt Some MDAs in Line with the e-Collection Mop Up Exercise, read:
“Approval is hereby granted to your bank (CBN) to exempt the Accounts of 13 MDAs (category six) as listed below the mop-up in line with the e-Collection Circular No. HCFSF/428/S.1/120 dated 7th August 2015 as these are profit-oriented government business entities that are to pay their dividends into the Treasury Single Accounts whenever they are declared.”
“Note that in line with the Presidential approval, the following as it relates to NNPC as listed above (S/No.9) under Category 4 should also apply:
“That National Petroleum Invetsment Management Services (NAPIMS) remains classified as an MDA that is funded from the Federation Account under Category 4 of the Circular, being the NNPC business unit responsible for the management of the Federal Government’s investment in upstream activities and funded from direct proceeds of oil and gas revenue.
“That NNPC will continue to preserve the status with respect to NAPIMS Operations Account as well as Escrow Account for Third Party Financing in view of the Joint Venture (JV) cash funding currently being experienced; and that all other NNPC’s commercial/business entities as re-classified as ‘Profit Oriented Public Corporations/Business Enterprises’ under Category 6 of the Circular which requires that only dividends from these entities be paid into the TSA.”
